HRD directs IIMs to defer results

The wait has turned even longer for students seeking admission to the Indian institutes of management (IIMs). Not only was today's all-important meeting of the directors of the six IIMs cancelled, all of them have decided not to release the list of successful candidates on April 21, as announced earlier.

The move has come on the back of a directive from the HRD ministry on Thursday evening asking the IIMs to put the admission process on hold till the Supreme Court hears the matter on April 23.

Sources in the IIMs revealed that IIMs Ahmedabad and Bangalore were keen to go ahead and release the final admission list on April 21 in spite of the directive, but IIMs Calcutta, Kozhikode, Indore and Lucknow decided against it.

In fact, Prakash G Apte, director of IIM Bangalore, spoke with Bakul Dholakia, director of IIM Ahmedabad, on whether they should release the final admission list on April 21.

Later in the day, IIM Ahmedabad confirmed its compliance with the directive by posting a message on its website, a decision that prompted IIM Bangalore to follow suit, a source told Business Standard.

The HRD directive stated that the Centre had noted the joint communication issued by Prakash G Apte, director of IIM-B, on behalf of other directors and asked them not to issue any offers of admission for the 2007 academic year until they receive further communication in this regard.

The directive clarified that a unilateral decision by any central educational institution would be a violation of the communication. It added that the central government is equally concerned with the problems in the short term that the institutions and some students may face as a result of the delay in issuing offers of admission.

Briefing reporters in New Delhi, Minister for Human Resource Development Arjun Singh expressed his gratitude to the IIMs for deferring admissions and denied the possibility of confrontation.

"The institutions were requested to hold their admission process for some days (till the Supreme Court's hearing) and they were kind enough to defer their plans," he said.

The minister also said that no time frame has been proposed for the IIM admission process.

S P Parashar, director, IIM Indore, who had initiated the meeting involving the six IIM directors on April 20, said, "Since the Supreme Court hearing is just two days away, it makes sense to wait for it rather than announce the list on April 21."

He also clarified that the directors' meeting had been deferred and not cancelled. "In all probability the directors will communicate among themselves and decide to meet after April 23. Even in usual circumstances, the directors meet every three months," he added.